Nelson Mandela has been buried in the African ground he loved after a funeral ceremony that included a 21-gun salute and fly-overs by military aircraft as well as a eulogy by a traditional leader wearing an animal skin.

Big guns have fired a salute in the rural village where Nelson Mandela grew up and military servicemen marched stiffly behind his casket on a winding dirt road as South Africa said goodbye for the last time to the man who reconciled the country in its most vulnerable period.

Celebrating one of his personal heroes, president Barack Obama has praised Nelson Mandela as the last great liberator of the 20th century, urging the world to carry on his legacy by fighting inequality, poverty and discrimination.

Joyous, singing South Africans gathered in the rain today to honour Nelson Mandela at a massive memorial service that is expected to draw some 100 heads of state and other luminaries, united in tribute to a global symbol of reconciliation.

More than 1,000 UK viewers have complained about the excessive coverage of Nelson Mandela’s death on BBC services, including some who grumbled about 'Mrs Brown’s Boys' being interrupted, it has emerged.

Nelson Mandela was the glowing beacon of hope, shining across South Africa and the world, whose 27 years in jail left him without a trace of bitterness or hatred against those who practised the evil of apartheid.

The South African government says former leader Nelson Mandela remains in critical but stable condition in hospital, though “medical interventions” are required because his health sometimes becomes unstable.

South Africa has been celebrating Nelson Mandela's 95th birthday, a milestone capped by news that the former president's health was improving after fears that he was close to death during ongoing hospital treatment.

President Barack Obama is to announce a new initiative to double access to electric power in sub-Saharan Africa, part of his effort to build on the legacy of equality and opportunity forged by his personal hero, Nelson Mandela.

Members of Nelson Mandela’s family and tribal elders gathered today at the former president’s rural hometown in eastern South Africa, as concern grew for the 94-year-old leader who spent a third day in critical condition in a hospita.